Millions of people of all ages suffer from incontinence of the bowel or bladder. Whether an infant, adult, or elderly person, the underlying cause of incontinence varies but the method of treatment typically involves absorbent article products. Adult incontinent briefs, disposable diapers and underpads can alleviate some of the emotional and physical discomfort of incontinence by absorbing and containing liquid and other discharges from the human body to prevent body and clothing soiling.
Typical absorbent articles include a topsheet facing the wearer that permits fluid exudates to pass through and a backsheet that prevents the exudates from escaping from the absorbent article. Much advancement has been made in the art since the introduction of the disposable absorbent article, as shown, for example, in applicant's co-pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/832,965, which is incorporated by reference herein. However, most of these articles are not adapted to aid the caregiver in the monitoring of the health of the wearer.
A problem encountered in post acute care settings is the increase in incidence of urinary tract infection (“UTI”). In addition, many patients in a managed care setting such as a nursing home require diagnostic testing. Many of these diagnostic tests require urinalysis, and many of these patients are also incontinent of urine. Therefore, collection of a urine specimen becomes a challenge for the caregivers in this environment. Current methods for collection of urine samples involve the extraction of urine from a used article. In the case of urine sampling from a baby, the sample is sometimes taken using a bag with an adhesive gasket, attaching to the wearer's skin. Finally, catheterization is sometimes used for sample collection. This practice can be attributed to an increase in incidence of UTI.
Certain attempts have been made in the art to include analysis of components of human waste, such as urine and feces, to provide indication of various specific health issues such as infections (e.g., urinary tract infections, etc.). For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,468,236 issued to Everhart et al. on Nov. 21, 1995 discloses a disposable absorbent product that includes a chemically reactive means having an end point adapted to provide a visual indicator of the presence of a substance in mammalian bodily excrement. In another example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 7,365,238 and 8,217,217 issued to Diehl et al. on Apr. 29, 2008 and Jul. 10, 2012, respectively, disclose wearable articles with the capability to detect signals related to a dehydrated state of a wearer. However, the prior art fails to provide the caregiver with a convenient means of collecting samples and conducting a urinalysis.
Accordingly, a need exists for absorbent articles that provide a wearable article that can provide diagnostic functionality.
The drawings listed above are intended to convey to one of ordinary skill in the art the present invention and its embodiments. In some drawings certain elements have not been shown for clarity. While the invention is susceptible to various modifications and alternative forms, specific embodiments have been shown by way of example in the drawings and will be described in detail herein. It should be understood, however, that the invention is not intended to be limited to the particular forms disclosed. Rather, the invention is to cover all modifications, equivalents, and alternatives falling within the spirit and scope of the invention.